Thanksgiving is more
than a day in November
That students of history
are taught to remember,
More than a date
that we still celebrate
With turkey and dressing
piled high on our plate...

For while we still offer
the traditional prayer,
We pray out of habit
without being aware
That the Pilgrims thanked God
just for being alive,
For the strength that He gave them
to endure and survive

Hunger and hardship
that's unknown in the present
Where progress and plenty
have made our lives pleasant...
And living today
in this great and rich nation
That depends not on God
but on mechanization,

We tend to forget
that our forefathers came
To establish a country
under God's name...
But we feel we're so strong
we no longer need faith,
And it now has become
nothing more than a wraith

Of the faith that once founded
this powerful nation
In the name of the Maker
and the Lord of creation...
Oh teach us dear God,
we are all pilgrims still,
Subject alone
to Your guidance and will,

And show us the way
to purposeful living
So we may have reason
for daily thanksgiving--
And make us once more
a God-fearing nation
And not just a puppet
of controlled automation.

Helen Steiner Rice